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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23540785">Listen</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Denois/pseuds/Denois'>Denois</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Tumblr Fics and Prompt Fills [28]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Check Please! (Webcomic)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Apologies all around, First Kiss, Getting Together, M/M, Prompt Fill, communicating</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-03-20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-03-20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 07:14:45</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,073</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23540785</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Denois/pseuds/Denois</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>It was two days after he built the bungalow before Nursey came down to visit. Not two days after he left their shared room, and technically he wasn’t done building the bungalow, but the outer walls were up, the insulation was added, pipes and wiring were run, drywall was up. He still wanted to put in some appliances and counters, and his uncle was bringing down a shower stall and toilet that he could buy off him at cost. But there were walls and they were painted and he’d made some curtains to hang. </p><p>Which was to say, it had been awhile. But after not being able to deal with living with his best friend and crush, he kind of expected Nursey to never come visit, so it was earlier than expected.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Derek "Nursey" Nurse/William "Dex" Poindexter</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Tumblr Fics and Prompt Fills [28]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1693858</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>78</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Listen</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Prompted by <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/bethecrayon">BeTheCrayon</a>:  nurseydex with 45?</p><p> </p><p>  <a href="https://sexydexynurse.tumblr.com/post/613073901030916096/angstfluff-prompt-list-part-2">From this list</a></p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>It was two days after he built the bungalow before Nursey came down to visit. Not two days after he left their shared room, and technically he wasn’t done building the bungalow, but the outer walls were up, the insulation was added, pipes and wiring were run, drywall was up. He still wanted to put in some appliances and counters, and his uncle was bringing down a shower stall and toilet that he could buy off him at cost. But there were walls and they were painted and he’d made some curtains to hang. </p><p>Which was to say, it had been awhile. But after not being able to deal with living with his best friend and crush, he kind of expected Nursey to never come visit, so it was earlier than expected. </p><p>He didn’t regret moving out. He did regret waiting until his boundaries were crossed and he exploded. He should have found some place else when it became evident that he and Nursey had incompatible needs in a room situation. He was pretty sure Samwell had emergency housing available, especially for student athletes. He just, he hadn’t wanted to admit that he couldn’t share a room with Nursey. He hadn’t wanted to move out of the Haus and feel even more like a hanger on. But mostly, what was the point of having a crush on a guy he couldn’t even share a room with?</p><p>Which was not what he was thinking when Nursey knocked on the door to the bungalow. Or when he showed Nursey to the thrifted and not yet restored loveseat to sit. That was all stuff he’d thought about in the days between moving to the basement and getting it into a halfway liveable space.</p><p>“You want a drink?”</p><p>“Oh, chill. Yeah. Uh-” </p><p>Dex held out a red Powerade from the cooler he kept down there. He was going to get a mini fridge. He was. He just figured they would be cheaper after the winter graduates moved out and ditched all their stuff at the local thrift stores and pawn shops, so he was waiting. </p><p>“Right. Red Powerade. My favorite.”</p><p>Dex nodded and sat down as well.</p><p>“Nice place, Poindexter.”</p><p>“I hope it will be. Not done yet.” He looked around the room and tried to think of how it looked to someone who didn’t know how he wanted it to look. Was Nursey chirping him, or serious? </p><p>“Chill. I’ll have to come down and see it when it’s all done then. I mean. If that’s ok.”</p><p>“Of course. I-” Dex broke off with a sigh. “I like spending time with you, Nurse. You and Chowder are my best friends. I just need my own space sometimes, I guess.” </p><p>“Ch’yeah. That makes sense. That’s actually why I came down; I wanted to apologize for not respecting your space when you built the fort in our room. That should have been an obvious sign of a boundary, and I ignored it. Not chill. Not swawesome. I’m sorry.” He was peeling the label of his drink and avoiding Dex’s gaze.</p><p>“Ayuh. That’s. That’s true I guess. And I appreciate you apologizing. But I was getting frustrated at our incompatibility a long time before that. I shouldn’t have let it build up. I just didn’t want to admit you were right about running me off. We’re best friends, I thought anyway. How could we not share a room? But, you know, sometimes people have different needs. Easier to see now.”</p><p>Nursey bumped their shoulders together. Not that it was difficult, the loveseat was pretty small for two d-men and Nursey had never managed to sit next to Dex without being pressed against him regardless of the space available. “I also was maybe trying to run you off.”</p><p>“You don’t say,” Dex deadpanned wryly.</p><p>“Hey, shut up. I’m trying, ok.” Nursey snorted, though, proving he knew Dex was joking. </p><p>“Seriously, Nurse. It’s ok. We just aren’t compatible. As roommates. I hope this means we can be friends again though. Like we were.”</p><p>“I haven’t shared a room with anyone since Andover, and that experience wasn’t great. So I probably anticipated shit I shouldn’t have.”</p><p>“Ah. Right. Sometimes I forget how much I have in common with prep school jerks from your point of view. I’m sorry I reminded you of that. I should….” He let out a sigh. “I should have let you have the room from the start and not pushed it. Not being in the Haus wouldn’t have killed me. Would have been better than making you think I was like them.”</p><p>“No. You listen to me.”</p><p>Dex turned his head to look at Nursey in confusion, finding Nursey looking at him intently, the shredded Powerade label forgotten in his hands.  “What?”</p><p>“You listen to me. When I say things aren’t chill or bother me or whatever, you listen and you try. And I haven’t said anything, but I noticed.” Nursey pressed his lips together and finally looked away. “I noticed. That’s why I like you.”</p><p>The smart thing to do, the thing he should do, was to take Nursey’s comment as being about their friendship. Realistically, it was almost guaranteed to be what Nursey meant. And Dex was a realist. </p><p>So, he really had no excuse for reaching out a hand as an offer, though he could always turn it into a low five or something if he was reading this wrong. “I like you, too.”</p><p>The air was heavy and time felt sticky and slow as the seconds hung between them. He was about to chirp about the low five and being friends when Nursey’s fingers slid between his and he held on.</p><p>“Chill.”</p><p>“Seriously, Nurse?” He looked over to find Nursey returning his gaze again, this time with a grin. </p><p>“So, how’s this couch for kissing?”</p><p>“Dunno. Haven’t tried it out yet. Probably be better after I reupholster it.”</p><p>Nursey nodded. “Probably. But you won’t know for sure unless you take before measurements.”</p><p>“Since when are you a stringent proponent for the scientific method?”</p><p>“Since the control and test group both include you and me and kissing.” </p><p>Dex laughed and shifted in his seat. He didn’t really want to stop holding Nursey’s hand, but it turned out that holding Nursey’s waist, and face, and arms, and hips were all pretty great, too. But the best part was definitely the feel of Nursey’s lips under his own.</p>
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